


I See Fire

by acciojd



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie) Compliant, Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie) Spoilers, Brotherly Love, Canonical Character Death, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Post-Avengers (2012), Post-Thor: Ragnarok (2017), Post-Thor: The Dark World
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-16
Updated: 2018-10-16
Packaged: 2019-08-03 03:13:30
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,974
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16318046
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/acciojd/pseuds/acciojd
Summary: INFINITY WAR SPOILERSThor sent Loki to the vault to resurrect  Surtur. Loki believes he is meant to die fulfilling this task. He's okay with the fact that his brother sent him to die. No really, he is.Or: Loki and Thor talk it out, sort of.Ties between Ragnarok and Infinity War.  I needed to close a few loose ends.





	I See Fire

**I See Fire**

 

 

_“Bold move, brother, even for me”_

 

And with that, Loki turned ran towards where the Valkyrie had left the Commodore. He moved as quickly as he could, knowing full well that Hela was squaring up with Thor and their time was limited.

 

Thor was strong, but he could not hold off Hela forever. He would fight to his death, and in the end Hela would kill him, and enjoy it. Loki couldn’t allow that to happen.

 

It wasn’t until he was behind the pilot control panel of the Commodore that he truly realized what Thor was asking for him. Surtur. The crown. The vault. Causing Ragnarok.

 

Loki knew that by putting Surtur’s crown in the eternal flame, Surtur would be reborn. And not just reborn, Loki knew the prophecy of Ragnarok. He would be “tower over mountains, and bury his sword deep into Asgard. “

 

This is madness” Loki whispered to himself as he realized what that meant for him. Sutur would explode out of the vault, out of the palace, in a raging inferno. That would be no place for a frost giant.

 

Thor had sent him to his death. Loki’s blood ran cold as he realized that. He and Thor might go round and round but he never really thought Thor would kill him or that Thor would want him dead.

 

_“Loki, I thought the world of you”_

 

Loki took a steadying breath and tried to control his fear. That wasn’t it. Thor didn’t want him dead. Thor would stall Hela until the Statesmen was loaded with all their people. Thor was preparing to die facing Hela, to save what was left of Asgard and Loki would have been with him to the end. Thor was planning on dying, and knew that Loki and Valkyrie would be side by side with him. Really, was dying in the vault any different than dying side by side with Thor fighting on the bifrost?

 

Except it was, at least to Loki. He would die fighting by Thor’s side, not alone in a vault. He was somehow more okay with that.

 

“It had to be me” Loki whispered to himself. Thor couldn’t send the Valkyrie. She didn’t know how to get into the vault. Did she? After all she had been a warrior and protector of the throne for centuries prior to Loki’s birth. She must have known where the vault was.

 

Loki shook his head. Thor knew well that Loki had experience in the vault, could get in there quickly and knew how everything was stored. After all, he and Thor had place the crown in the vault when Thor returned to Asgard.

 

He landed the Commodore as close to the palace as he could get before running inside. He couldn’t doubt himself. He couldn’t doubt Thor now. He just hoped it would be quick. Instant, even. The idea of slowing burning to death wasn’t exactly appealing.

 

He hoped it was enough to get him into Valhalla. Sure,he was causing Ragnarok, but it was at his King’s orders. He helped save what was left of their people. Surely that should be enough. He would see Frigga again, and one day, hopefully not today, he’d see Thor again.

 

He moved as quick as he could, trying not to remember that these were his last seconds, trying not to remember that he was going to die. He didn’t want any fear to slow him down. There was a chance Thor was still alive, still fighting, and would live if Loki acted quickly. Thor would mourn him again. 

 

It wasn’t until after he picked up the crown that the Tesseract caught his eye.

 

Truthfully, his only thought in that moment was that he wouldn’t die in fire.

 

He could use the Tesseract to open a portal, first to the Commodore, and then to the Statesman.

 

He pocketed it, and relief giving him new speed, sprinted to the eternal flame.

 

“With the eternal flame you are reborn”

 

The second the crown went into the flame, Loki was gone.

* * *

 

 

When he first arrived on the Statemen, he quickly deduced Thor was alive. The survivors were already talking about his coronation. Although he knew that the number of survivors was depressing in and of itself, he was relieved that there were some Asgardians that survived.

 

After learning Thor lived, and his heart significantly lighter, Loki considered leaving. He still had friends among the nine realms. He had places he could go, decide what he would do next.

 

But he decided it was cruel to leave Thor thinking he had died again. After all, Thor would think it was at his order that Loki died. It was what the old Loki would do. Let Thor mourn him again, and go on to play his tricks elsewhere. But that was predictable, and Loki had already decided he wanted to mend his relationship with Thor. This Loki would be better to his brother.

 

With that thought, Loki went towards the chambers that Thor had set up for himself.

 

“It suits you”

 

Loki was somewhat surprised at how calm Thor was upon seeing him.

 

“Maybe you’re not so bad after all, brother.”

 

At least he got a thank you.

 

“If you were here, I might even give you a hug”

 

“I’m here”

 

Thor walked toward him and clapped his hand on Loki’s shoulder, and then on the back of Loki’s neck, pulling their heads together slightly. It lasted only a moment before Thor broke away.

 

“Let’s go brother, we must decide where to take our people.”

 

And with that, Thor walked from the room.

 

Loki was, quite frankly, stunned.

 

That was it? He expected, at minimum, Thor to express that he was glad to see Loki alive. Part of him even hoped he’d apologize and explain why he sent Loki, ‘I’m sorry brother, but I knew you’d be quick around the castle, there was no time for any wrong turns if we wanted any of our people to survive. I trusted you could do it. I should have said good-bye. I should have told you I loved you.” (Well, Loki thought, perhaps that was a bit dramatic for Thor, but maybe that’s what he would have Thor say in his next play).

 

Still, nothing.

 

That night, as Loki lay in the bed designated for him on the Statesman, he contemplated Thor’s actions as well as his (lack) of reaction to Loki’s return. In the end it had to be one of two things. Either Thor didn’t really care if Loki lived or died, as long as the task the fulfilled, or he truly thought that Loki’s death was an acceptable price to pay for the survival of their people.

 

Loki decided he could live with the later.

* * *

 

 

 “We don’t have the Tesseract”

 

Loki’s frowned deepened. Thor didn’t know he had it? How did Thor think he got back to the Statesman?

 

There wasn’t time to further think on Thor’s words. Loki felt the hand tighten on his throat. He heard his neck snap. And then there was nothing.

 

* * *

 

 Thor wasn’t intentionally avoiding sleep. Asgardians had always needed less sleep than humans, but this was pushing it, even for Thor. He didn’t even have a chance to sleep until after the horrible snap. Between the escape from Sakar, the battle with Hela, the escape on the Stateman, Thanos, the guardians, Nidavellir, Wakanda… resting wasn’t high priority.

 

But now it was. They needed a plan to find Thanos and figure out what to do next, but first thing’s first, the survivors needed to rest.

 

It didn’t really surprise Thor that as soon as he fell asleep, he saw Loki.

 

Loki could dream walk. It was one of his many skills. He could send his consciousness into someone else's head when they slept. He had dream walked to Thor before.

 

This wasn’t dream walking.

 

When Thor was in need of his father’s counsel, his father had come to him, able to visit from that space between life and death.

 

_Are you the god of hammers?_

 

And now, Thor needed Loki. So it only made sense that Loki came to him as well.

 

They weren’t on the cliffs of Norway where Thor last saw his father. They weren’t on the Statesman, where Thor last saw Loki. Thor found himself in the library of Asgard. Loki sitting on his favorite armchair, books splayed out before him.

 

“Are you really dead?” Thor asked, his voice harsher than intended, words more biting than he meant. Loki visibly winced at the tone and didn’t make eye contact with him.

 

“This time, my brother, I fear I am.”

 

Even in this dream, Thor felt his heart drop to his stomach and his blood turn cold.

 

“No.” it was the only word he could manage. His voice shook. This time Loki did look up and look towards him. Whatever Loki saw in Thor’s face caused him to frown.

 

“It’s okay, Thor. We ensured that some of our people survived. We bought enough time to make the Valkyrie escaped with as many people as she could. You survived. We did it.”

 

“At the expense of your life, Loki.” Thor said, tears filling up in his eyes.

 

To Thor’s shock, Loki’s frowned deepened. He bit his bottom lip, a tell Thor remembered from his childhood whenever Loki was deep in thought. After a few more moments Loki spoke.

 

“How was this different from the Vault?” Loki asked.

 

“The Vault?”

 

“You sent me to the vault, to bring a fire monster the size of a mountain back to life, so that our people could live. How is this any different?”

 

Now it was Thor’s turn to look confused.

 

“Because you died?”

 

“To save our people, just like I was going to die in the vault, if I didn’t take and use the Tesseract” Loki practically yelled.

 

Suddenly it hit Thor. He didn’t think he could have felt worse until this moment, he didn’t think his guilt could be any greater.

 

Loki thought he had ordered him to his death. Loki had followed Thor’s order to get the crown and bring back Surtur, believing that he was going to die. Loki believed that Thor had sent him to die. And he still went. He still did what was asked.

 

Thor collapsed in the armchair behind him. His knees were shaking so badly, they could no longer support him. His breathing picked up and for a moment, he thought he might be having a panic attack. If this wasn’t some sort of dream, he was sure he would pass out.

 

Loki noticed his distress and stood from his chair to kneel by Thor.

 

“You didn’t know?” Loki asked.

 

“I thought you could get out with your seidr.”

 

Loki laughed at that. “I was pretty powerful, but even I can’t create portals into space.”

 

Loki put a hand on Thor’s shoulder. “I must admit, this is somewhat of a relief. Here I thought you sent me off to die for our people, without as much as a good-bye.”

 

Thor let out a pained sound somewhere between a scream and a moan.

 

“Thor, it’s okay. Our people still live. You still live. It’s okay.” Loki looked around. “I have to go now, I think our time is up. I’ll see you again someday.” Loki stood up and started to step away.

 

Thor felt an ache in his chest as he rose from the armchair. He grabbed Loki’s arm and pulled him into a tight hug.

 

“I love you, brother, more than you will ever know. You saved our people, you saved me, and I will miss you every day of the rest of my life” Thor whispered.

 

Loki smiled, but Thor could tell he was relieved to hear it.

 

“Now that's a good-bye worthy of a play.”

 

 

_The End_

 

 


End file.
